If you want to build effective abdominal muscles, you can’t miss out on the hanging leg raises. Although simple to do, this core-shaking exercise engages your abs and hips while challenging and training your entire torso and arm. But before you head out to grab the hanging bar, you need to know what hanging leg raises are and how to do them effectively.
What are Hanging Leg Raises?
Hanging leg raises are exactly what they sound like. It starts with a pull-up position and a free hand hold. You hang by holding a horizontal bar with your two hands and lifting your legs in the air. Hanging leg raises put strain on your hip flexors and lower abs as these body parts are working against gravity, pulling them down. This is why it is a highly effective exercise for developing strength in your abs and hip region. While doing that, you are also stabilising your lats, i.e., middle and lower back muscles and forearms. Before you dive into the techniques, let’s hop on to the benefits of doing hanging leg raises.
Hanging Leg Raises Benefits
Hanging leg raises are effective for boosting core strength along with a lot of other benefits. You can practice them to enhance your grip and arm strength. It also strengthens your shoulder muscles, as they hold the weight of your entire body from the shoulder joints. In today’s world, most of our time is spent holding a phone or typing away on a keypad, which can cause stiff muscles and joints. Exercises like hanging leg raises are great for working up your shoulders. It can help loosen your muscles and relieve the stiffness in your joints and muscles. It is a great exercise for growing kids, as it helps strengthen the arm and spine. That is not all. Hanging leg raises can have immense benefits for the aching back muscles of busy adults, too. It stretches the back muscles and spine and allows the tendons, ligaments, and muscles to relax. If you have back pain due to a desk job, you can benefit from doing hanging leg raises.
How to Do Hanging Leg Raises?
Most importantly, you need a sturdy and securely fixed overhead bar if you are doing hanging leg raises at home. It should have an ideal width so that you can grip it with your hands without difficulty. Hold the bar with an overhand grip then raise your feet in the air so that they are positioned parallel to the ground, bending from your hips. Ensure that your legs are stretched out straight. Deeply inhale as you lift your legs up, and exhale as you gently lower them.
You may have kids doing hanging leg raises for fun in the park, however, doing it can be a little challenging for adults. But do not worry! You can do this exercise with different equipment to assist you, such as the leg raise machine, assisted pull-up machines, or even a resistance band as a modification.
Doing Hanging Leg Raises with Modifications
To make the hanging leg raises more doable for you, you can use a Roman chair. This is a type of hanging leg raise machine with proper back support and arm padding. You can place your both arms on the padded cushioning and then lift your legs. You can also bend your knees and keep your thighs parallel to the ground if you are unable to do the proper leg raise as a beginner. You can also do it in a different style by starting on the floor and working your way up. For example, you can do a reverse crunch, which will help lower the strain on your upper body.
If you can easily do the hanging leg raises, you can make it more challenging by introducing a dumbbell, ankle weights, or a slam ball. You can hold the slam ball or dumbbells between your ankles to work up your core.
Mistakes to Avoid When Doing Hanging Leg Raises
You need to practice caution even while doing an exercise as simple as hanging leg raises. In fact, there are a few common mistakes that you need to steer clear of, as follows:
- Avoid swinging your legs or making swimming motions. Utilise your core strength to pull your legs up and try to hold the position.
- Avoid dropping your legs down too quickly with a jerk. Firstly, you need to maintain the stance for a while to engage your abs. After that, gently lower your legs to prevent jerks in the spine, shoulders, and arms.
- One more mistake that beginners make is bending their legs at the knees. While doing so can make it a little easier to do this exercise, this is definitely less effective than the right technique. Although you feel your body shaking, try to keep your legs parallel to the ground. This will eventually come with practice.
To Sum Up
Hanging leg raises can be quite effective for improving the strength of your legs, torso, arms, and shoulders. It can be done with just an overhead bar. If you find it difficult to do hanging leg raises, you can do it with the help of gym machines. Make the results more effective and avoid injury, by being mindful of common mistakes.
